Dewey Beach's Town Council meeting July 10 appeared to physically exhaust Mayor Diane Hanson.

Among a litany of agenda issues laid two which were particularly divisive. One being the issue of Marc Appelbaum, the town manager who has served in that position without a formal contract since February.

The other was Fred Townsend, the town's solicitor since 2011, who some on council thought was playing favorites with others in Town Hall and perhaps should be replaced.

Townsend countered that his legal opinions need to be defined as in the best interests of council, which he said has been too divided for him to come up with overall decisions that satisfy everyone.

"Not every commissioner has the same opinion and I view you as my clients," Townsend said. "However, I view you all as a whole as my client. So if you're pulling your council in opposite directions, it's impossible to please everybody."

And after a meeting that spanned nearly three hours, several warnings about "performance evaluation" comments and accusations thrown at nearly every member of council, Hanson threw her hands up as she tried to exhale her way to an adjournment.

Only, she still had a closed executive session to conduct, as was pointed out by Townsend.

Appelbaum faces accusations of 'collusion'

First, Appelbaum's lack of a contract caused a certain amount of ambiguity as to his ongoing employment. He was serving on a two-year contract which ended in February, but council has not made any legislative movement to either renew his tenure or to remove him from the position.

While the commissioners tried to keep the discussion centered around merely the terms of his ongoing or nonexistent employment, it regularly shifted into a debate over Appelbaum's performance.

"We've got, as far as I'm concerned, the best town manager we've ever had," Hanson said, which earned her a verbal warning from Townsend that she was diving into evaluating Appelbaum's performance, a no-no when it comes to open public meetings.

But other members said the relationship between the town manager and certain members of council was strained, including Councilwoman Anna Legates, who pointed to his original contract as proof.

"We've never had, with the history of Dewey Beach, a contract that I'm aware of ... a town manager would set their own schedule and report that schedule to the mayor," Legates said.

It was the opinion of Townsend that because town charter states town managers can only be removed "for cause" that Appelbaum was still rightfully serving, something disputed by some members of council.

At one point, Legates sounded accusations of "collusion." Her point was she had made numerous attempts to have the issue discussed, but no concrete resolution had reached a vote.

Appelbaum, sitting in a relaxed, red button-up shirt donning a University of North Carolina cap on his head, didn't let that comment stand on its own.

"Are you accusing me of collusion?" he asked.

"I'm not answering that," she said.

Councilman David Jasinski said an original draft of the agenda would've proposed discussing Appelbaum's position as open, something Townsend disagreed with.

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Dewey Beach officials debated the town manager’s and attorney’s tenure at the July 10 meeting.(Photo: Daily Times File Photo)

"(The) position is not vacant and to advertise that position as vacant would be illegal," Townsend said.

But some council members clearly had issues with the way Appelbaum's expired contract had been drafted.

Councilman Courtney Riordan said he would look at the contract renewal terms discussed at previous meetings as he and others wanted more say in the direction of the town manager's position.

Legates said she had also sought outside legal advice on the issue and the unnamed attorney didn't agree with Townsend's interpretation. Council later agreed to seek a second opinion on the matter.

Townsend's job in question

It then led to the discussion of Townsend's position as the town attorney.

Dewey has had issues with its legal representation in the past, as former town attorney Glenn Mandalas resigned in 2011, citing the town's "considerable litigation" and its desire to re-examine its legal structure. The town was $51,000 over budget for legal fees through September that year.

The agenda left open the possibility of replacing Townsend and his Dover-based legal office's services with another attorney if the council felt it necessary.

He, not a full-time town employee, did not give himself the same "personnel" protections he gave Appelbaum.

First was Riordan, who said Townsend works for "part of council" instead of the whole.

He went on to say Townsend was exhibiting "favor to some members of the commission versus others" when it came to "big issues that need major resolution."

"I feel, and this is my opinion, that the town manager and the mayor have had too much influence in trying to get certain decisions (from Townsend) … for our council," he added.

Commissioner Jasinski argued that council should view Townsend's body of work as a whole rather than individual decisions they disagreed with. He pointed to the decisions of the Supreme Court, which regularly decide cases at the federal level with only five out of the nine members agreeing with the decision.

"I believe Commissioner Riordan is looking at the whole and he is looking at the broad spectrum," Legates said in response. "And I do support his comments and I do agree with him."

Commissioner Gary Mauler added the council may need to look at a new attorney with a specific kind of expertise given the town's specialized litigation issues.

"I don't think it's any specific form or issue. I think it's a matter of what skill sets we need … and what (his) background is," Mauler said, adding land use litigation is a large focus for the town government's legal department.

Ultimately, Hanson said other commissioners need to communicate more with both Townsend and Appelbaum about their concerns, much to the umbrage of council members Legates and Gary Mauler.

Riordan then moved to "sit down and write up some things, not necessarily changing our legal offices, but changing the way we access" and communicate with Townsend and his legal services.